The Mind and the Spirit
by Chromacolors
Summary: "Your vision will become clear only when you look inside your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens." -Carl Jung A Boy from India is sent to Osaka, Japan by his parents to experience the culture that his mother hails from for a year. But when he encounters strange monsters and equally strange people, the experience will involve more than culture shock.


Chapter 1: Blue Velvet

"Welcome to the Velvet Room."

The boy inhales sharply, startled, and looks around. He is no longer sitting in the first class seat his parents reserved for him on the luxury airliner he is supposed to be on. Instead, he is sitting in a cushioned chair, layered in blue velvet like cloth with red mahogany legs and brass fittings. Before him is a table made of the same mahogany that the chair's legs are made of, and it has a square blue tablecloth draped over it.

Actually, now that he is focusing more on his surroundings, he realizes that he is still in a plane. It is certainly not the one he swears he should be on though. It's seems to be a different airline, judging from how the walls, ceiling, and floor are covered in blue. To his left and right are rows of normal seats, and the small, round windows reveal a cloudy sky.

The most interesting details are the three people across from the boy. A man and a women, both who appear to be in their twenties, sport the steward and stewardess uniforms of an unknown airline. Their dark skin, in spite of their silvery hair and golden eyes, remind the boy of his father and paternal grandmother, so they may be Indian.

A much older man of indeterminate age sits on a blue lounge chair similar to what the boy is sitting in. His bony hands are crossed over eachother before his very long, very pointy nose, giving the impression of a vulture with huge bloodshot eyes and white feathers.

"Ah yes, it would appear that our current guest has a most interesting destiny…" The old man says with a hearty chuckle.

The young man in the blue chair blinks as he turns his focus to the three in front of him.

"Where…?"

"We are in a place that exists between mind and matter, dreams and reality," The man says, motioning his hand about to point out the cabin, "This is the Velvet Room, and my coworkers and I are its staff."

The boy cannot help but crane his neck to the left to peer past the seated man. The door between the pilot's cockpit and the cabin is open. There appears to be someone piloting the plane.

"May I ask who you all are?" He asks, now very curious.

"My name is Igor," The man says before motioning both hands to the stewardess and steward at his sides, "To my left is Rājā, and to my right is Rāṇī. We are most pleased to make your acquaintance."

The boy politely bows to his hosts. However, he is still confused.

"Why am I here? What happened to my flight?"

"You are asleep right now," Rāṇī says, "You being here effects nothing in the reality that your physical body is currently inhabiting."

"As for why you are here, you had signed a contract to be able to use the services we provide." Rājā says, answering the other question.

A contract? Since when did he…

 _The man holds the notepad out in front of him._

 _"Please sign this. It is very important that you sign this contract immediately."_

 _The boy feels tired. Too tired to question why he is being made to sign anything this early in the morning before he boards the plane to Japan. He takes the blue pen and writes his name on the signature line._

 _"Thank you very much, sir," The man says, tipping his blue hat, "The purpose of this contract will become evident very soon."_

The boy jumps a little and stares at Rājā.

"Wait, I remember you. You made me sign that contract before I got on my plane! Was it for this? But why?"

Igor chuckles in response to the questions, resting is chin on his crossed fingers.

"Like I had stated before, you possess a most interesting destiny. My master has seen that you have a Potential for great power. This place, the Velvet Room, is where you can hone your powers and gain new abilities."

"We will explain the meaning behind all of this at a later point," Rāṇī says, nodding to the guest, "For now, please introduce yourself to us."

Should he? The boy looks back and forth between the three strange people before him.

Al of this is so confusing… But they did promise to explain.

"My name… My name is Kasai Kumar."

Igor grins. Oddly enough, there is no malice in his actions. Actually, Kasai feels like he can trust the man now.

"We are most pleased to have made your acquaintance, mister Kumar. You are going to be waking up very soon now, so we have no more time to explain the finer details in full."

"We will meet again very soon, however," Rājā states, "We will inform you of how this realm works then."

So, he will have to wait. He is still confused, but now Kasai feels that he can trust these people to some degree.

Igor and the guest both stand from their seats and bow politely to eachother, then Kasai suddenly feels very lightheaded before passing out.

* * *

Critique is appreciated and will not be ignored. Do bash this work if necessary, as even that may provide valuable information.


End file.
